Hetmyer's whirlwind knock blows Zimbabwe away, helps West Indies register massive win

Match Overview

West Indies and Zimbabwe locked horns in the 44th match, their first of the Super Eights of the ICC T20 World Cup 2026, at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on Monday, February 23. Zimbabwean captain Sikandar Raza won the toss and elected to field first.

The Chevrons struck early to send the threatening Brandon King back in the third over. Shimron Hetmyer joined captain Shai Hope and the duo began attacking the bowlers in earnest. A significant moment in the game came when the southpaw was dropped on nine runs by Tashinga Musekiwa in the fourth over and Hetmyer took full advantage of it in the overs to come.

Meanwhile, the stand between Hope and Hetmyer was clipped when it was worth 37 runs, but not before ensuring the West Indies ended their powerplay at a healthy 55/2. New man Rovman Powell and Hetmyer took the wind out of the Zimbabwean bowling attack subsequently as the latter unleashed himself. The left-hander deposited the ball in the stands on the leg side several times off the spinners as Raza looked clueless.

Hetmyer, who was the aggressor of the two in the initial period of the partnership, completed his ninth T20I fifty off just 19 balls as the Caribbeans reached the halfway mark with 115 runs on the board. The duo did not relent at any stage until the partnership came to an end in the 15th over. Notably, the pair added 122 runs off 52 balls for the third wicket which changed the whole complexion of the game.

Powell, too, completed his half century off 29 deliveries as cameos from Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, and Jason Holder helped the West Indies to a massive 254/6. Notably, it is the second-highest total in the history of the T20 World Cups and also the highest by any team against Zimbabwe in all T20Is.

Zimbabwe began their response briskly, but it was ground to a pause equally quickly as well as the Chevrons lost three wickets on the same score (20) by the end of the third over itself. A brief 32-run stand developed between Raza and Dion Myers before Gudakesh Motie clipped it in the seventh over. Raza then combined with Tony Munyonga to keep the runs coming but the pace was not enough given the lofty target.

Once again Motie broke the partnership as Raza fell in the 11th over with the scoreboard reading 94/5. Zimbabwe then went through a collapse as they lost four wickets for just nine runs, but Brad Evans minimised the embarrassment for his team with a 43-run knock and a 44-run last-wicket stand with Richard Ngarava. In the end, the Caribbeans won the game by 107 runs - their second-biggest margin of victory in terms of runs in all T20Is.

Top run-scorer of the match

Top wicket-taker of the match

Player of the Match

Shimron Hetmyer

The left-hander took the game away from the Zimbabweans in the first eight overs itself. The 29-year-old was relentless on the leg side as he pulled and slog swept the spinners for several sixes. It was an innings of authority from the Guyanese that deflated the Zimbabweans and set the tone for a big total. Notably, Hetmyer registered his highest score in the shortest format today and it will be a memorable innings for him and his team.

Turning Point

Musekiwa dropping Hetmyer off Blessing Muzarabani in the fourth over was the key moment in the game. The southpaw was on nine runs then and was looking dangerous in his brief stay. And as fate would have it, the left-hander made the Chevrons pay a huge price for the drop.

What the captains said

Winning Team Captain, Shai Hope (WI)

"(On enjoying the team’s batting effort) We all enjoyed it, to be honest. When everyone is firing like that, it’s a real joy to watch. It’s great to see contributions coming from all around. Rovman Powell, everyone adding to the tally. Maybe there’s just one more battle left to convert it into a really big score, but it’s all coming with time."

"(On ball gripping the surface) Honestly, I didn’t expect it to spin as much as it did today, especially in the first innings. I thought it might turn a bit because the surface was slightly tougher than usual, but not to that extent. The amount of spin surprised me. It was great to see our spinners make full use of the conditions. (On Gulakesh Motie) We sometimes underestimate and neglect how important time away from the game can be, especially when you’re playing a lot of cricket. He’s been one of our best bowlers across formats, and it’s been great to see him come back having used that time wisely. He’s clearly worked on his skills and even added something extra with his wrist spin, which has been very beneficial for us."

Losing Team Captain, Sikandar Raza (ZIM)

"(On his finger) The plan of action is to go for an X-ray tomorrow and hopefully everything will be done. (Challenges with changing venues) I don’t want to think like that. If we think about venues, if we think about the change in the country, we will learn nothing from this game. For me and for Zimbabwe, it's very important that we take something out of this. Excuses won’t help us. If we are good enough to go through, we must play good cricket wherever we are, here or in Sri Lanka. So the venue change doesn’t bother me. What matters is that we’ve taken some valuable lessons from today. We expected the pitch to stay true and flat, but it started turning, and that’s where we lost control. From an experience point of view, it was a great game. The boys will learn a lot, how to bowl on slower surfaces and how to bowl to batters who can hit the ball hard and a long way. If we find ourselves in a smaller venue against a team like West Indies again, the lessons from today will definitely help us."